Saudi Binladin Group

Saudi Binladen Group (SBG; Arabic: مجموعة بن لادن السعودية Maǧmūʿat Bin Lādin al-Saʿūdiyyah), known as Binladen Group Global Holding Company since 2019,[1] is a multinational construction conglomerate headquartered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. In 2011, the Saudi Binladen Group signed a US$1.23 billion contractual agreement to construct the tallest building in the world, Jeddah Tower in Jeddah. They are also party to a US$3.4 billion agreement to construct the Doha Metro located in Doha.[2] The conglomerate comprises an estimated 537 companies.[3] The group's founder was Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden, the father of Osama bin Laden.

Saudi Binladin Group
مجموعة بن لادن السعودية
TypePrivate conglomerate, holding company
IndustryConstruction
Founded1931 (1931)
FounderMuhammad bin Laden
Headquarters
Jeddah
,
Saudi Arabia
Key people
Khalid Nahas, Chairman
OwnerIstidama Holding (36.22%)
Bin Laden family (63.78% through the Binladin Company for Development and Commercial Investment)[1]
Websitewww.sbgom.com

Overview

The SBG was founded in 1931 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden Sayyid, whose relationship with the country's founder, Abdulaziz Al Saud, led to important government contracts such as refurbishing the mosques at Mecca and Medina. He was also the father of notorious terrorist and Al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden. In 1964, Mohammed bin Laden was commissioned to reclad the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem.[4] After the death of Sheikh Mohammed in 1967, the group was headed by Mohammed Bahareth, brother of Mohammed's first wife and uncle of his oldest children. In 1972, Salem bin Laden, the eldest son of Mohammed bin Laden, took over as his father's successor with the assistance of several brothers. Upon Salem's death in a plane crash in 1988, the leadership of the group passed to one of Salem's brothers, Bakr, the current chairman, along with thirteen other brothers who make up the board of the bin Laden group. The most important of these include Hassan bin Laden, Yeslam bin Ladin and Yehia bin Laden. The most controversial brother was Osama bin Laden, the leader of the organisation Al-Qaeda and perpetrator of the September 11 attacks.

The Group considered an initial public offering in 2011, but declined to do so due to a combination of low oil prices, a weak stock market, and bureaucratic obstacles.[3]

In April 2018, Bakr bin Laden, as well as his brothers Saleh and Saad, transferred their 36.2% stake in the Saudi Binladin Group to the Istidama Holding Company, which is owned by the Ministry of Finance.[3] The government of Saudi Arabia subsequently established a five-person committee to run the Binladen Group, which includes of Abdul Rahman Al Harkan, Khaled Nahas, Khalid Al Khowaiter.[3] Reuters described the ownership transfer as a functional nationalization, with al-Harkan, the committee's chairman, reporting to Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan.[3] al-Karkan subsequently negotiated an 11 billion riyal loan from the Ministry of Finance.[3]

Current activities

The bin Laden group is represented in most Saudi cities — Riyadh, Dammam — and in a number of capital cities in the region (Beirut, Cairo, Amman, Dubai). According to a synopsis by the PBS news program Frontline:[5]

The Group has constructed Abraj Al Bait Towers in Mecca[6] and has been contracted by Kingdom Holding Company to build the Jeddah Tower.[7]

On 11 September 2015, while doing construction work in the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, one of the Group's cranes collapsed due to high winds causing 118 deaths and almost 400 injuries.[8] As a result, the Saudi king banned the firm from taking new projects while having its current projects reviewed. The Saudi government removed the ban on the Binladin Group in May 2016, allowing them to bid on new projects.[8]

Saudi Arabia projects
  1. Royal Terminal, Jeddah
  2. King Abdulaziz International Airport, New Haj Terminal, Jeddah
  3. Al Faisaliyah Center
  4. Madina-Qassim Expressway
  5. Um Alqura University, Makkah
  6. Lotus Compounds, Jeddah
  7. Noura bint Abdul Rahman University
  8. Abraj Al Bait Towers, Makkah
  9. Jeddah Tower, Jeddah
  10. King Abdullah Economic City
  11. Jamaraat Bridge
  12. Saudi Arabia National Guard Housing Project
  13. King Abdullah Financial District, Riyadh
  14. Saudi Arabian Railways Projects CTW-100 and CTW 110
  15. Al Masjid Al-Haram expansion

International projects
  1. Blaise Diagne International Airport, Senegal
  1. Sharjah International Airport Expansion & Development, UAE
  2. University of Sharjah, UAE
  3. Expansion of Velana International Airport, Maldives
  4. Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia

Website

SBG's Internet domain name, saudi-binladin-group.com, was registered on September 11, 2000, for one year, expiring on the same day as the September 11 attacks. The domain was later acquired by a domain speculator.[9]

References
  1. Kalin, Stephen (19 March 2019). "Exclusive: Saudi Arabia curbs family influence in Binladin group shake-up". Reuters.
  2. Fattah, Zainab (2 August 2011). "Alwaleed Hires Saudi Binladin to Build World's Tallest Tower". Bloomberg Business.
  3. Paul, Katie; Arnold, Tom; Ashad, Marwa; Kalin, Stephen (27 September 2018). McBride, Janet; Woods, Richard (eds.). "Special Report: As a Saudi prince rose, the Bin Laden business empire crumbled". Reuters.
  4. "About Us". sbg.com.sa. Saudi Binladen Group. 2010. Archived from the original on 2011-02-19. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  5. "About the bin Laden Family". PBS. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
  6. "Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat". www.ctbuh.org.
  7. "Bin Laden Group to build world's tallest tower". CNN. 2 August 2011. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
  8. "Saudi suspends Binladen group over Mecca crane crash - royal court". Reuters. 2015-09-15. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
  9. Altman, Howard (9 November 2001). "Osama Family's Suspicious Site". Wired.
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